Your DNA on Display

DNA 11 turns your unique genetic makeup into highly personalized art pieces. Now your DNA can be forever hung on mom’s wall with love. Sure beats that plaster handprint you made her in the second grade.

How it works:

The company sends you a collection kit so you can gather a sample of your DNA. Basically, you’ll need to swab the inside of your cheek and send it back to them. Sounds pretty simple, huh? The tough part is choosing from the wide array of options:

Single DNA portrait, or combine 2-4 people’s DNA in a single canvas

Variety of sizes and portrait types

25 custom color combinations

Add your signature to your art piece

You can even download a digital copy of your art piece (use it as a screen saver, on your business cards, send it to friends, whatever) or choose the GenePak option that lets you identify specific genes on your portrait.

Fingerprint and Kiss portraits are available too, as well as (get this) portraits made from your pet’s DNA. That’s right - dogs, cats, horses, even lizards and reptiles can get in on the action!

If you’re a CSI:NY fanatic, you’ll be interested to know that a DNA 11 art piece was featured as a clue in one of their episodes.

But what if you’re like me and paranoid about personal information? According to the company, all DNA samples are destroyed after processing and photography by their lab and an anonymous six-digit serial number/barcode (not your real name) is used to track your DNA sample, fingerprint or lip print. The image cannot be deciphered or reverse engineered and does not (and cannot) hold any forensic-level information.

It’s not cheap, and the total process can take 4-6 weeks from the date they receive your sample, but at least now you can trade in that clichéd Ikea wall art for something with a bit more caché.